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Calcioni
sebadas
Sebadas (Sardinian Easter fritters, with ricotta and mozarella, brushed with honey)
Originated from: Sardinia, Italy
Occasion: Easter; special times
Contributed by: Mary Melfi

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Ingredients

For the pastry dough

4 cups flour *
6 eggs
pinch of salt
1/4 cup butter *

Measurement is approximate

For the pastry filling

1 cup mozzarella, shredded
2 cups ricotta, strained
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon sugar

Vegetable oil for deep frying

For brushing (fried pastry)
1/2 cup clear honey
Zest of orange (about a tablespoon)



Directions

Mix the flour and salt.

Add the butter to the flour.

Beat eggs. Add slowly to the flour mixture.

Knead and work into a malleable pastry dough. If the dough is too soft, add a touch more flour, if it's too hard, a touch more butter.

Divide the dough into three portions. Shape into balls and place in clear plastic bags. Put the dough-balls in a container. Wrap the container with a towel or blanket. Let it rest for two or three hours.

Cut the rested dough into small pieces (about 2 square inches) and flour them individually and pass them through a pasta machine (One could use a rolling pin but a pasta machine facilitates the process).

The resulting pastry dough should be thin but not to thin (not more than 1/8 of an inch thin). It should be wide enough to make 4 inch circles (or smaller if you prefer). Continue passing the dough through the pasta machine and place the strips on a floured tablecloth or wooden boarded.

Once all the dough has been passed through the pasta machine, cut out 4 inch circles -- if you have a cut cutter this size, great, if you don't you can use an espresso cup saucer to get the same shape.

Combine the ricotta, mozzarella, egg yolk and sugar.

Place one tablespoon or so of the cheese mixture in the center of half the pastry circles and put the remaining circles of pastry dough on top of them. Seal the edges well (a floured fork pressed on the edges works very well). After the circles are sealed press down lightly on the top circle so the cheese mixture is evenly spread out (Be careful not to press too hard or the mixture will slip out, and ruin the pastry).

Heat oil in a large pan.

Deep fry the pastries on medium heat, a few at a time (There should be ample space between the pastries or they'll lose their shape).

Fry until golden (Do not brown). The amount of time in the pan might vary, but it shouldn't take more than two to three minutes per pastry.

Place the honey on low heat and add the orange zest.

Brush the pastries with honey, or alternatively, serve the pastries warm and allow the guests to coat the pastries with as much clear honey as they like.




Notes

Even though these fritters are not referred to as "calconi" they are ricotta-stuffed pastry pockets or pastry envelops that are part of the larger family of cavazuni-style of sweets. These sebadas are very similar to Molise's famous "fiadone con ricotta." Molise's fiadone are generally baked, not fried. I imagine that Sardinia's famous "sebadas" can also be baked, but I followed what seems to be the traditional method. That said, it's understood that in Italy every little town in every little province in the country has its own "traditional" method of doing this and that, and so to say any one way of doing a recipe is The traditional method is absurd. What makes Italian cooking interesting to home cooks like myself is that there are countless ways of doing the same recipe. For example, some sebadas recipes recommend putting the orange zest in the cheese mixture rather than on top of the fried pastry. Some recipes don't add any sugar to the cheese mixture, and others do. Some recipes call for more mozzarella than ricotta, while others call for more ricotta. Whichever recipe one follows sebadas make for a lovely dessert. I suspect "sebadas" used to be served at Easter, but now they're served any old time. For those looking to try out an Italian fritter with a cheese filling, this is by far the best one to experiment with. I really love this recipe. Photo and notes: Mary Melfi.

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